Put off doing things can have a negative impact on your health and well-being. Consisting of unmet expectations, hidden agendas, and repeated delays can put you in a state of stress and overload, which can damage your body in several ways.
Stress impacts our bodies in many ways, including altering the parts that handle sleeping and other functions. When we are in a state of stress, we tend to be more focused on what needs to be done next than how to do it.
This can continue even if the thing you are trying to do is not very important. For instance, spending money or taking an educational course may not necessarily make you feel more knowledgeable or productive, but being forced to acknowledge that when finished may.
In this article, we will discuss some tips for managing stress and putting things off tasks that require serious effort and commitment.
Delay = Estimated time to complete task * (task importance – mood)
This equation can be used to help determine the best time to start a task. For example, if you’re trying to get things done without having a specific item on your To Do List, you may be able to reduce the time required by using this equation.
The more important the item on your To Do List, the shorter the estimated time will be.
Items that are less important may take longer to complete due to the likelihood that they will not be done in a timely manner if are not planned out. This is why it is important to have a plan for items that need doing and when they need doing!
Having an idea of when tasks should be completed can also help reduce the amount of time that they take. For example, it can help cut down on the amount of procrastination.
Avoid = Time to complete task * (mood)
When we put things off, we’re missing out on the time that’s right for us to get what we want to do done. We can avoid time by doing what it takes more time to complete a task.
For example, when we shop online, it takes a few minutes to navigate to your destination. But if you keep browsing and reading on your app or website, it can turn into hours of shopping time.
Avoiding time doesn’t mean giving up; it just means looking at tasks from all angles and having them completed before you think about putting them away for the night or when you wake up in the morning.
This means taking a step back and considering what projects you have left and how much time you have left to finish them. It also means having the will to get things done is still there.
Finish = Time to complete task * importance
This fundamental rule of getting things done can be summarized into two phrases: finish what you start and finish what you put off.
When you start a task, you have a certain amount of time to work with. If you want to make a dinner out of the ingredients your grocery store has, for example, you must buy all of them before nightfall on Sunday.
In this way, finishing an task is like giving yourself a deadline. You need to put something behind you and move forward if you want to continue working on it.
But how do we keep the pressure on ourselves to keep working on things low? How do we keep the confidence in our workflow high?
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First step = easiest step to take
The first step to getting things done is really easy: Take a break!
Breaking up longer periods of work into breaks makes it easier to start working again, and can also help you get rid of the feeling of procrastination.
Breaking up work into smaller, more manageable chunks also helps develop skills like organization and time management, which are key elements in getting things done.
Breaking up work into smaller, more manageable chunks also helps develop skills like organization and time management, which are key elements in getting things done. Breaking up work into smaller pieces also allows you to control how much you put on your stress relief list.
If you need a break from your work, consider taking a short stay at a friend’s house or community center or the beach house you haven’t used for months.
Break down into smaller steps
While it may feel like you’re going to have to take your time to do these steps, in reality you’re using the right ingredients to make this system work.
You’re relying on the right combinations of ingredients to create a system that works.
This means that when you follow the system outlined in this article, you will start to see results as quickly as possible. You will be able to keep up the momentum and progress over time.
You can also determine when a step is complete depending on your goals. If taking on a new project will help get your current project finished, then it would be a good step to take.
If getting more done on an existing project would help prevent further procrastination, then taking the next step would be to do so. This keeps each step portable so you can continue to work on your projects.
Estimate time for each step and total time
While it’s tempting to put things off, doing so damages your health. It causes you to overwork and stress out, which can in turn cause you to procrastinate and lose motivation.
Procrastination is a vicious cycle that destroys your motivation and ability to get things done. Don’t make this mistake.
Estimate your time for each step of your work flow and you’ll be more likely to succeed. For example, if you plan to spend an hour completing a task, invest an hour of your next day’s time – the equivalent of one full day – to complete the task.
You’ll be more likely to succeed because you will have an estimated amount of time left for other tasks and activities in your day. You’ll also have an idea of how long each task or activity will take because you will have recorded footage of how each step goes. This footage can help prove later that you didn’t give up and keep going as there is more time remaining.
Keep a list of tasks you want to do
Most people have lists of things they want to do, but most of those lists are short-term and characterized by putting off one thing after another.
Many of these lists have been created by making many small tasks on the list, which can be a helpful habit to create. Some people create very broad lists with categories like education, work, family, fun, etc.
This is not a mistake-making tool. This list box can become a full-fledged schedule and timeline because it includes all the things that need to be done in your life.
The key to keeping the list of things you want to do (and don’t want to do) short and snappy is having an understanding of what each item on the list is for.
Are some tasks MODULE A TO DO items? Or are some more MIDDLE OF THE LINE items? It’s the difference between having a plan or not having a plan and going into action.
Review your list of tasks regularly
It’s a mistake to assume that because you’re trying your hardest to get things done, your list of tasks will somehow magically go away.
You won’t make progress if you don’t review your list of tasks regularly, give yourself feedback on how well you’re doing, and take action to update the list.
You can do this by setting a timer for a minute at 5-10 minutes into your next task and achieving a goal like “I completed this task at least once last week. I want to make sure I update the task in my log today and yesterday so I have an accurate benchmark for my progress.”
To get started, take a look at http://bit.ly/procrastinationequation to learn more about the equation and how to stop putting things off and start getting stuff done.
